"We have been nice girls long enough. We’ve made our cholent…we should take to the streets." - Blu Greenberg

Friday, June 28, 2013

Mark Your Calendars: 2013 JOFA Conference

From December 7-8, the Jewish
Orthodox Feminist Alliance (JOFA)’s 8th International Conference of Feminism
and Orthodoxy will be taking place in Manhattan at JohnJayCollege (524 West 59th Street, New York, NY).
This year’s conference theme is “Voices of Change.”

I was privileged to be able to
attend the last JOFA Conference in 2010, and I absolutely loved it. Hearing all
of the speakers discuss various Jewish and Orthodox feminist topics lit a fire
within me, and fueled my activist work. One of my first-ever published articles
was a piece about my reflections on the conference.

On Saturday night, after Shabbat
on December 7, there will be “An Evening of the Arts,” which will feature the
voices of women artists and performers with displays of music, poetry, story,
and song. I’m really looking forward to attending this part of the conference,
since it’s always inspiring to see Jewish women who find new ways to express
themselves through the arts. As someone who has interviewed several Jewish
women performers, I always love to hear about new ones, so I hope that the
Saturday night program will introduce me to some new artists.

Sunday December 8 will feature a
full day of lectures, workshops, films, and panel discussions with leading
Orthodox feminist scholars, networking opportunities, and action-oriented
programming to help participants bring JOFA’s message back to their communities.
There will even be special programming for educators, teens, and college
students. I’m really looking forward to this whole day of the conference, since
I know that all the speakers who are presenting will be amazing and inspiring.

For more information or to get
involved, email conference@jofa.org.

For breaking news and conference updates, as well as all-around Jewish feminist
inspiration and information, follow JOFA on Twitter or like us on Facebook.

About Me

Prayer for Agunot

Creator of heaven and earth, may it be Your will to free the captive wives of Israel when love and sanctity have fled the home, but their husbands bind them in the tatters of their ketubot. Remove the bitter burden from these agunot and soften the hearts of their misguided captors. Liberate Your faithful daughters from their anguish. Enable them to establish new homes and raise up children in peace.

Grant wisdom to the judges of Israel; teach them to recognize oppression and rule against it. Infuse our rabbis with the courage to use their power for good alone.